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src: https://unsplash.com/photos/woman-doing-yoga-meditation-on-brown-parquet-flooring-NTyBbu66_SI

I am not a very fit or strong person. Whilst I did a lot of sports when I was younger (mainly basketball), I stopped most sporting activities when I was in my 20s, and when I tried to come back to them my knees were not up to the task anymore.

For the last few years, I’ve been learning ways in which I can keep my body active without putting too much strain on my knees. I thought it would be good to share the three greatest finds I did in my search for healthy activities.

Yoga, pilates, swimming and biking are also very important for me, but I don’t include them in the list because they were to some extent “easier to find”.

Feldenkrais

The Feldenkrais Method (or “Awareness Through Movement”) is a discipline that allows me to gain mobility in areas where I have pain or limited movement. A way of articulating it is that it helps my body to ‘learn to move as a whole’.

The way the method goes is by performing small (and often ‘unusual’) movements and allowing the body to ‘learn’ from each movement sequence. Many people consider Feldenkrais a type of meditation.

My favourite resource online to practice Feldenkrais is the YouTube channel Improving Ability (former “Feldenkrais with Alfons”).

Wim Hof Method

The Wim Hof Method is a method that combines cold exposure and breathing techniques. It was developed by Wim Hof, an extreme athlete who achieved many Guinness World Records.

The method comprises multiple activities, and I introduce a bit of each of them to help my health. Simply having a cold shower at the end of a normal shower, and performing a breathing exercise before getting out of bed are very good for me.

I avoid doing the Wim Hof breathing techniques while standing or in water because my understanding is that you can lose consciousness for a few seconds - so it’s safer to do it in bed or sitting on the floor.

I also never push the cold exposure too much because of safety reasons.

Hybrid Calisthenics

I recently found online a very simple and easy exercise routine that can be done at home. The routine was developed by a YouTuber called Hampton.

The first series of exercises of this routine are very low intensity (e.g. pushups by standing in front of a wall) which I found great. Also, the routine comes “already organized” to some extent, giving you the days to do each activity - so it’s easy to start it, no need to think too much about it.